They made a name for themselves by consistently touring over the United States. Rather than signing with a known label, they initially decided to found their own, Chunksaah Records (named after their long-time friend Timmy Chunks), but are now releasing their albums on Epitaph Records.
The Bouncing Souls are one of the best selling and longest lived of the punk bands from New Jersey, following the legacy of previously successful punk bands Adrenalin OD and the Misfits.
DISCOGRAPHY
Studio albums
The Good, The Bad & The Argyle (1994)
Maniacal Laughter (1996)
Bouncing Souls (1997)
Hopeless Romantic (1999)
How I Spent My Summer Vacation (2001)
Anchors Aweigh (2003)
The Gold Record (2006)
Ghosts on the Boardwalk (2010)
Comet (2012)
Live and Compilation albums
The Bad the Worse and the Out of Print (2002)
Live (2005)
Splits
BYO Split Series, Vol. 4 (With Anti-Flag) (2002)
EPs
The Greenball Crew (1993)
Tie One On (1998)
Fight to Live (1999)
Gone (2001)
DVDs
Do You Remember? 15 Years of the Bouncing Souls (2003)
Live at the Glasshouse (2005)
""7" Records"
Ugly Bill (1991) (pressed on black and also transparent green wax)
"The Argyle e.p. (1993) (pressed on black, yellow, green, and red wax, some had green and yellow covers)
"Tales Of Doomed Romance" (1994) (split ep with the band Buglite pressed on red and black wax)
"Neurotic" (1994) (pressed on black and yellow wax)
"Bouncing Souls/Weston split" (1994) (pressed on black and red wax)
"Split EP" (1995) (pressed on black with the bands basic skills, youth gone mad, and the reviled, some have red stamped cover some black)
"Johnny X" (1995) (pressed on black wax)
"Fight to Live" (1999) (pressed on orange wax, distributed by epitaph europe)
"Tales Of Doomed Romance" (2001) (reissued split ep with the band ZeroZero pressed on yellow and black wax)
"Bouncing Souls/Lucky Stiffs Split" (2005) (pressed on splatter wax and 1500 picture disks)
Trapped
The Bouncing Souls Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
The Bouncing Souls's song "Trapped" is all about the inner turmoil that comes with making decisions. The simple choice of saying "yes" or "no" can have vastly different consequences - saying "no" may make you feel free, but also isolated, while saying "yes" may make you feel trapped, but also accompanied. The lyrics use repetition and parallelism to emphasize this internal conflict, with the phrases "When I say yes I'll be trapped but I'll have someone" and "If I say yes I'll be trapped, When I'm trapped I'll have someone" being repeated throughout the song.
The line "I'm inside out cuz I don't know" speaks to the confusion and vulnerability that can come with decision-making - it's as if the singer's inner workings have been turned upside down because they can't figure out what to do. The closing line "I'll have to decide yes or no when I'm free" suggests that sometimes the only way to make a decision is to remove oneself from the situation entirely and gain some perspective.
Overall, "Trapped" is a poignant reflection on the choices we make and the consequences we face.
Line by Line Meaning
If I say no I'll be free but all alone
Declining an offer will leave me unencumbered, yet lonely.
When I say yes I'll be trapped but I'll have someone
Accepting an offer will make me feel confined, yet I will have companionship.
I'm inside out cuz I don't know
The indecisiveness I feel has caused a state of confusion within me.
Decide before I arrive
I must make a decision beforehand, as it will be difficult for me to do so in the moment.
Yes or no if I say yes I'll be trapped
A binary choice must be made, for accepting will lead to feelings of confinement.
When I'm trapped I'll have someone
Choosing to accept will bring me companionship, but also constrain me.
What's it like to be alone I don't know
I cannot comprehend feelings of solitude and therefore cannot empathize with someone who experiences it.
I'll never know
It is not possible for me to understand what being alone feels like.
I'll have to decide before I arrive
Taking action prior to arriving will be critical, as making a decision at the moment will be difficult.
I'll have to decide yes or no
I must choose between accepting the offer and feeling trapped or declining and bearing the weight of loneliness.
When I'm free
Avoiding commitment will allow me the freedom to make choices as I please.
Contributed by Alexandra I. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@FTWorWTF
My favorite song on Simplicity.
@capperith1292
PUNK ROCK!!!
@Guenter34
I'm so happy to hear a NEW, fast-paced Punk Rock song for a change
@timmcnemar3910
todays anthem
@kareneyescream4339
lol
@stezmutiny4667
Does anybody want a rebel song, exposing the ones pulling strings,
About the things that seem wrong? A song we want to really sing.
I want to sing a rebel song to tell the world how I feel
About the things that feel wrong and how the people are so deceived.
The world is ours, but it’s been taken.
We fight each other for a little scrap.
Thieves and cheats, they’ve been making
Cages for us and we’ve been trapped.
This could be the last of the rebel songs. Let’s put it down in history,
Change ourselves and move on. Let it be a memory.
We won’t need a rebel song in a future of our dreams.
It’s up to us to make it real, get our minds really free.
The world is ours, but it’s been taken.
We fight each other for a little scrap.
Thieves and cheats, they’ve been making
Cages for us and we’ve been trapped.
We’ve been trapped.
Whoa, we’ve been taken.
Take 'em out and take it back.
Whoa, we’ve been taken.
Take 'em out and take it back.
Whoa, we’ve been taken.
Take 'em out and take it back.
Whoa, we’ve been taken.
Take 'em out and take it back.